One of my daily highlights involves squealing with my kids over any cute animal video from my social media feed. No matter how good or crazy our day turned out or what different planes we’re existing upon, animals bring us together for a warm, fuzzy moment.

WTF: What Tiny Faces!

With every video, we dream of someday owning a property large enough to house every species we’re fawning over. It’s no wonder, then, that we look forward to going to get a real warm fuzzy fix at the America’s Family Pet Expo. In just a few weeks, the Expo will be flocking to OC Fair & Event Center Apr. 22 – 24, 2016.

May need to get a bigger dog house!

Here’s what I know about the Expo:

MOST OF US UNDERESTIMATE/UNDERUTILIZE OUR PETS: With the exception of my high school horse, most of my pets simply eat, poop, sleep, drool, shed, bark/meow, run away, hide, play dead, play fight and ignore me until they beg for something they can’t live without right NOW. At the Expo, you’ll find animals showcasing skills and expertise – including Police dog demos, free-flight bird show and cat agility courses?!

Yay! Kids love a splash zone !

IF IT FOLLOWS YOU HOME, YOU CAN KEEP IT: Growing up, my friends owned cats, dogs, hamsters or fish. When we moved to California, I immediately met someone in our rural neighborhood whose goat maintained their perfectly manicured lawn and another family whose mallard controlled their snail population. I love that at the expo you get to meet a wide variety of birds, exotic reptiles, and other pets. Plus, you may adopt them onsite – and learn proper care for your new family member. Over 600 pets were adopted last year. MINI MULTIPLIES ADORABLENESS: Everything becomes hugely adorable when tiny! Come lay down in a field of mini donkeys, goats, sheep, and even mini cattle! They’ll also have full-sized fowl, pot-bellied pigs and rabbits competing for your affection!

Enter the aquarium design contest!

SOMETHING FOR ALL*: Your kids will love the expo, your current pets will not. New pets would much rather meet your pets in a less stressful environment than in a crowded expo hall. *PLEASE leave your pets at home.

Like this:

I hate that my cats know that when I’m home, they must act like model citizens and walk on the floor, sleep in their beds, and not scratch the couch. Because I’ve returned home unexpectedly and the cats freeze from their tabletop perch hoping if they don’t move, I won’t see them. I’ve heard them sneaking booty calls with my kids’ stuffed animals and I wash my dishes before using them because my cat loves the coolness of the fry pan. This week, the rules changed!

Last week while it poured, I sat typing my blog. I put my foot down accidentally on a toy and reactively lifted my foot – it ran away! Somehow a big beetle crawled into our home and its size paralyzed me. Thankfully Moonshine cornered it and ripped out a corner of the carpet hunting it. Knowing Buggy’s time was limited, I left before the tell-tale crunch.

Moonshine the fierce hunter!

One week later I opened a kitchen drawer and Buggy, startled by the light, scrambled for darkness. AAH! Still alive and running loose in my cabinets, somehow it climbed up several feet! I immediately gave my cats full permission to do whatever it took – climbing in cabinets, patrolling pillows – leave no object unturned!

Tonight, my cat sat propped again by the kitchen cabinets anticipating some invisible enemy. I usually play along tossing a napkin before his face to see how high he jumps backwards. Tonight, however, I left him patrolling. He pounced! He only does that if he has something! I lifted my feet up off the carpet and tried to focus on anything else.

I noticed Moonshine sitting proudly looking at something moving slowly on the carpet. With the stunned bug, I leaped at the chance! I rinsed out my latte (don’t want this bug caffeinated or it’ll double in strength!) and used the lid to trap him in the cup. Much as I wanted to hurl Buggy, I gently placed him outside on a plant.

See him on the right? Still haunts me!

I minimized the creepiness by calling Buggy a beetle, but is this really a cockroach, EW?! Maybe the kids and I will tone down our Beatles obsession as it’s attracting the wrong sort of creepy characters!